Looking to build the next big SaaS idea?
Well, in some cases, it can help to think small!
One of the most popular trends in SaaS development is micro SaaS, which is a small business that revolves around a niche software platform.
It’s an easy way to launch your own SaaS startup without much external help or funds.
How is it different from traditional SaaS companies?
This article will explore micro SaaS and 10 trendy areas to build your business idea. We’ll also cover the benefits of building micro SaaS solutions and answer relevant FAQs.
This Article Contains
- What Is Micro SaaS?
- 10 Popular Micro SaaS Ideas for 2023 (With Examples)
- 5 Key Benefits of Building Micro SaaS Solutions
- 4 FAQS About Micro Saas
Let’s go!
What Is Micro SaaS?
“Good things come in small packages” is an apt description for micro SaaS — a niche SaaS business typically run by a sole business owner or a tiny group.
It’s the future of the lifestyle software business, and you could easily cash in on it.
Consider this example from one of the pioneering micro SaaS founders — Tyler Tringas: Tyler Tringas founded Storemapper, an app that lets merchants add a store locator service to their website. It targets a specific niche — merchants with a website and multiple outlets.
What’s more?
Anyone can build a micro SaaS business online. All you need is an idea or a specific problem that people need solved.
Unlike a typical SaaS product, the premise behind a micro SaaS product is relatively straightforward. So, you don’t need to build a complex program.
But how is a micro SaaS startup different from a SaaS startup?
SaaS vs. Micro SaaS
Now, you probably understand that traditional SaaS companies target a broad solution and are helmed by a larger group of individuals (rather than a sole founder).
Here are more detailed differences between the two:
| Criteria | SaaS | Micro SaaS |
| Target Customer | Broad audiences with big markets | Specific niche markets |
| Funding | Multiple cycles of external investments | Self-funded and bootstrapped |
| Growth Objectives | Strong growth objectives | No explicit growth objectives |
Both micro SaaS and SaaS have their unique appeal.
But micro SaaS’ potential for success with limited resources makes it a lucrative option.
In fact, it all comes down to your product idea!
Let’s explore areas that show potential for a micro SaaS company.
10 Popular Micro SaaS Ideas for 2023 (With Examples)
Pick your next big idea from this pool of micro SaaS trends:
1. Feedback Tools
The booming SaaS market 💥has created an opportunity for customer feedback and review apps for software.
After all, customers and businesses have a lot to say about the tools and services they use.
And they want to be heard!
Most importantly, customer feedback would help SaaS businesses optimize their product designs to meet customer needs and expectations. It could also help a potential customer decide whether to use the SaaS product or not.
Example: Featurebase
Featurebase lets you capture customer feedback through widgets and suggestion boards. Plus, businesses can analyze customer needs, reviews, and feedback in one place.
2. Content Management Systems
Content marketing has been a major asset in helping businesses grow their customer base. It’s no wonder that every SaaS business is jumping on the bandwagon.
However, the more specialized a business’ online needs become, the more it looks for a CMS that can deliver on its unique demands.
That’s where your micro SaaS application could help!
What does the app need to do?
It should help marketers create and publish beautiful, search engine optimization (SEO) content for websites and blogs. It could also help users manage their social media.
Example: Prismic
Prismic is a page builder that lets you create and publish stunning SEO content on your website. It lets content, design, and development teams collaborate to ensure smooth, seamless content.
3. Workforce Management
Companies today are all for optimizing work schedules, incorporating remote working environments, and allocating resources effectively.
So, why not build a workforce management micro SaaS application that excels in niche features like project planning, time tracking, or meeting scheduling?
Example: FindMyShift
Findmyshift is a micro SaaS solution that focuses on employee scheduling and builds on it to offer related services, like leave management and payroll.
4. Sales and Marketing
A comprehensive sales and marketing SaaS tool requires extensive collaboration between teams and deep pockets.
Instead, you could create a niche sales platform, plugin, or add-on as a micro SaaS application.
It helps if your micro SaaS app helps solve a problem that customers have in other sales and marketing apps.
Example: ProveSource
ProveSource targets one aspect of sales conversion — social proof. It lets you add smart social proof notifications to your website or online store to build trust in your product and boost conversions.
5. Journaling
You can do a lot to take charge of your mental health. Take, for example, journaling.
Journaling helps reduce stress, strengthen emotions, and improve your mood. It’s a positive step to staying mentally fit that you can take each day.
And an app could make taking that step easier. Now, it’s not a complete fix to one’s mental health problems, but it does help you take positive steps to address them.
Moreover, a journaling micro SaaS platform is an example of one of many small solutions that helps address the global problem of increasing stress. So, you don’t have to limit yourself to it, but it can be a great place to start.
Example: Punkt
Punkt lets users add a single story daily to keep track of their state and build a journaling habit. Users can add their moods, reasons, and locations to each story to have enough to reflect on while reviewing past entries.
6. Training and Learning Platforms
Upskilling and training are in demand, especially with the constant change in career landscapes and the introduction of new tools.
So, why shouldn’t you capitalize on your knowledge?
You could create a training and learning micro SaaS platform that helps users gain unique skills required for a niche market.
Just remember, users today want engaging and binge-worthy content. Anything less won’t make them eager to use your platform.
Example: iSpring Learn LMS
iSpring Learn LMS specializes in employee training platform that helps with onboarding, upskilling, and improving workflow. It’s one of many micro apps from iSpring.
7. Freelance and Self-Employment
The gig economy has emerged as one of the biggest forces of employment, changing people’s ideas about work.
This has given rise to a demand for tools catering to freelancers, their employers, and self-employed people.
You can reference solutions created for SMBs and recreate one or more aspects that are tailored to the needs of freelancers.
Some of these niches are time management, client management, job portals, invoicing, etc.
Example: SolidGigs
SolidGigs, as its name implies, is a job site that helps freelancers find gigs. Its USP is connecting freelancers with the top 1% of freelance positions available in premium markets.
8. Billing and Invoicing
Whether it’s freelancers, contractors, or employees, everyone can benefit from using great billing or invoicing software.
Yes, there are already many invoicing and billing apps, but it’s a growing SaaS market. So, it may be worth creating micro SaaS software for a small business.
Your software could help automate or streamline the process of creating invoices or emailing them to clients. You could even introduce an invoicing system on the blockchain network to enable secure payments.
Example: Invoicy
Invoicy is a free invoicing software that lets users save time with templates, recurring invoices, and online payments.
9. Email Management
It’s easy to lose track of important communications when your inbox is flooded with countless emails.
That’s why an email management SaaS tool is essential to maximize work efficiency.
A micro SaaS email management tool could help users prioritize important tasks and maintain timely correspondence with managers or clients. Pair that with email tracking and analytics, and you could help boost employee productivity when it comes to responding to emails.
Example: Timetoreply
Timetoreply helps you achieve client and customer success through email performance optimization. It also ensures you never miss an email on busy work days through notifications and alerts.
10. Web Analytics
Your website is the centerpiece of your online presence.
Web analytics helps you track and analyze information on your website to help you convert prospects into customers. That means more revenue for your business.
This makes it an essential tool for businesses in the software space. So, it’s a worthy idea for a micro SaaS startup.
But remember, since it’s micro SaaS, targeting a niche area is helpful.
Example: AnyTrack
AnyTrack lets you track ad data from your website and marketing campaigns in real-time. It even integrates with Facebook and Google Analytics to ensure you have a comprehensive view of your data.
After going through these examples, you probably understand that there’s a lot of potential in micro SaaS.
But what’s the benefit of not going big?
Let’s find out.
5 Key Benefits of Building Micro SaaS Solutions
If you’re looking for a sign to tell you to start your micro SaaS startup, take inspiration from these advantages:
- Good ROI: Micro SaaS founders earn recurring income based on their subscription model. Although it might not generate as much income as your typical SaaS application, micro SaaS has fewer overheads. So, it’s still a healthy ROI if the platform is successful.
- Remote-friendly: Because of the limited size of your team, you can run your micro SaaS startup from anywhere. You only need a good internet connection since your resources are cloud-based.
- Sole ownership: Micro SaaS platforms typically run under sole ownership with no outside investors. That means you (the business owner) are in charge (read: responsible). Plus, there are fewer red tapes and more time to work on what works.
- Fewer resources: These applications can be built fast and cheaply. In fact, an MVP or minimum viable product (an early version with basic functionality) can be created in under 24 hours using SaaS application builders.
- Easy support: Since your app will run in a niche market, managing support for a smaller audience will be easier. You could even address issues yourself or with the help of a very small team.
So, if you’re looking for a quick way to launch a SaaS product idea, micro SaaS is your best bet. It requires minimal investment and can be run even on the go!
What’s more?
Your successful micro SaaS platform could even become a golden egg that sells for millions if you garner the attention of a successful enterprise in the field. Of course, it’s your choice to sell it or grow your baby 👶 app into full-fledged SaaS software.
But before you start building your micro SaaS app, let’s address common doubts around it.
4 FAQS About Micro Saas
Below are answers to common questions you may have about micro SaaS.
1. What Do You Need to Build a Micro SaaS Business?
All you need is a dream.
You need an idea that:
- Solves a specific problem that users are willing to pay for
- Has a target niche and audience
- Can manifest an excellent product
Once you have that, you need to validate your SaaS idea with feedback, data, and market research. The next step is to create an appropriate pricing plan, which you can determine based on the problem you solve, your business model, and your target customer.
Finally, you can build your minimum viable product (MVP) and launch your platform.
2. How Do You Validate a Great Micro SaaS Idea?
Validating your micro SaaS idea is one of the best practices you need to follow before investing in your micro SaaS platform.
Here’s what you need to do:
- Define your application goal by answering: What problem will your platform solve? Who’s your target audience? Will they pay?
- Define your minimum success criteria to determine if your micro SaaS company will lead to a profitable business. It’s the smallest achievement your product must achieve within a period to be determined a success.
- You then need to test your idea with a control group that helps you explore weaknesses and find solutions.
- Finally, after receiving the above feedback and data, you need to decide whether you want to move ahead with the product idea or not.
3. How Do You Build a Micro SaaS Product without Coding?
We’ve mentioned that you can build a micro SaaS platform on your own.
But what if you don’t know how to code?
You can use a no-code tool!
No-code software is a program that lets you build projects without any coding knowledge. It allows you to build a SaaS MVP without spending large amounts on hiring a tech team.
4. How Much Does it Cost to Build a Micro SaaS Product?
According to simform.com, the average micro SaaS development cost for a minimum viable product is between $10,000-$15,000.
This cost for micro SaaS development is distributed between hiring a small team (of testers, designers, etc) and marketing.
And if you’re curious, here’s the SaaS development cost of larger apps:
- Basic SaaS app: $30,000-$35,000
- Average SaaS app: $50,000-$60,000
- Complex SaaS app: $140,000-$150,000
Start Micro, Aim Big with Micro SaaS!
Micro SaaS opens the doors of tech success to anyone with a simple idea to solve important problems.
If you’re one of them, begin planning your SaaS MVP today!
But to ensure a seamless launch, you should invest in a good marketing strategy. In fact, per HubSpot, 36% of customers prefer learning about products over the Internet.
That’s why it helps to have an SEO-friendly website and a good content marketing strategy.
We can help with both!
Contact Startup Voyager to have a team of SEO experts create a brilliant content marketing strategy to 20x your organic traffic.
